Lightning strikes often cause substantial damage to expensive and sensitive electronics, appliances or industrial equipment such as but not limited to home stereos, televisions, computers, video recorders, microwave ovens, security systems, air conditioners and the like. Typical repair bills can run between $80.00 to $200.00 and up per damaged item and take up to several weeks to fix. The power line connections, the antenna input line connections and the phone line connections are a direct electrical line connection to nearby lightning strikes.
Techniques that have been proposed in the past included lightning sensing, then mechanically unplugging the AC plug of electronics equipment from their wall outlet supply source or industrial automatic systems for special applications at a much greater cost.
Having to constantly disconnect and reconnect these connections at the onset and aftermath of each storm is both inconvenient to the user and further impossible when no one is present at the time of the lightning surges, yet no other options are readily available for true lightning protection at an affordable price to the home electronics user.
Typical insurance companies offer little help to most off-the-shelf electronics device repairs, since many insurance policies maintain typically a $250 to $500 deductible. Claims often do not cover replacement cost since older damaged electronics are pro-rated as to their original value. Furthermore, manufacturer and factory warranties on typical electronics devices also do not help, since typical manufacturer warranties exclude lightning damage as a non-covered "act of God" occurrence.
The problems are further compounded since the home electronics market has expanded greatly, microwave ovens, televisions, stereos and video recorders, for example, come with an always "ON" chassis, even when the device is turned "OFF". These constantly "ON" chassis devices are always connected to power lines. This newer type of ON-OFF system is not as resistant to lightning damage from the power lines as the old ON-OFF switched devices which, upon being switched off, left the chassis isolated from the power albeit still connected possibly to antenna signal or phone input. Computer systems are left powered up for convenience and e-mail/Internet access. Larger screen televisions are heavy to move around and the bigger ones, such as projection TV's often incur additional moving charges and high labor charges when taken to the shop for repairs. Strong lightning damage is often unrepairable; a total loss.
Typical off-the shelf surge protectors have also failed to protect against strong lightning energy on the power line. Surge protectors are meant to work with power company surges and spike protection but are not intended to protect from strong lightning. Typical surge protectors are passive unpowered devices that can be damaged by lightning and are non-adjustable to various operating conditions. All disclaim being strong lightning arrestors. The author of this invention, a television repairmnan, was often asked how one could adequately protect expensive electronics, other than unplugging.
Patents have been proposed to overcome lightning type problems. See for example U.S. Patents: Des. 340,026 to Siagel; Des. 356,297 to Carl et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,117 to Downing; U.S. Pat. No. 3,891,919 to Penninger; U.S. Pat. No. 4,276,576 to Uman et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,887,180 to Climent et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,083,042 to Merchant; U.S. Pat. No. 5,168,212 to Byerley III et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,521,603 to Young. However, none of the prior art adequately provides for protecting electronic devices completely, conveniently, and inexpensively from lightning strikes, nor offers a modular, building-block approach for adapting to particular needs.